Agent Uzumaki
by GoodbecomesGreat
Summary: After losing his mother in Metropolis as collateral damage during a Superman fight, Naruto's family moved to National City, where they thought they would be safe. Then Fort Rozz crashed, and an escapee from the jail killed the rest of his family. Now, years later, Naruto is one of the DEO's best agents, and he's been asked to come home to National City.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I Do Not Own Naruto Or Supergirl

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The strike team was in the air before dawn. Two four-person squads clipped to a pair of MH-6 little birds: compact, light helicopters used for special operations in the United States Army.

For close to an hour, the helicopters had matched the manic undulations of the desert, and now, as they jerked back and forth to avoid the tall skyscrapers of Metropolis, Command Sergeant Major Naruto Uzumaki had to use his chakra to keep his boots planted on his MH-6's landing skid.

Like the other men with him, Naruto wore charcoal fatigues and a matte-black impact armor that protected everything vital from his neck to his knees. His helmet encased his blonde hair, and its silver-mirrored visor completely obscured his jaw and blue eyes. The only place Naruto's skin showed was at his wrists where his leather gloves didn't quite touch his shirtsleeves.

Even with the gloves, Naruto's fingers were cramped with cold, and he squeezed his hands into fists to keep his blood flowing. He checked the mission clock on his wrist. The moment the luminous blue numbers hit 2300, the helicopters crested a line of factories, and Naruto and his team got their first line-of-sight view of their objective: one of National City's many abandoned industrial warehouses.

Somewhere inside that building was a suspected alien bomb-shop.

Before the pilots triggered green "ready" icons in the strike teams HUDs, Naruto, and his team were already in motion; slapping magazines into their weapons, yanking charging handles, and toggling safety switches—a well-rehearsed symphony of preparatory clicks and snaps that went unheard in the rushing wind as the MH-6's hurtled down the empty street and came to abrupt, nose-up stops on the edge of town. The modified thrusters under the helicopter's cockpit and tail rotated to keep the aircraft steady as the team unclipped from their hard-points, leapt onto the asphalt, and began to run.

Naruto was the leader of the strike team alpha, and he took point. Seeing how his own armor stood out in the pale, pre-dawn light of the city, he knew speed was essential if both squads were going to reach the workshop undetected. So he set a brisk pace, hurdled a low, chain-link fence, and wove quickly through piles of plastic crates and pallets that littered the parking lot of what appeared to be nothing more than a rundown warehouse.

By the time Naruto and his team reached the building's front door, the others were winded. If it weren't for the agent's helmets, their breaths would have billowed bone-white in the frigid air.

They didn't usually wear heavy blast gear for rapid, airborne strikes. But the Alien Insurrectionists had started booby-trapping their bomb shops, and this time, the team's commanding officer(CO) didn't want them taking any chances.

Naruto brought his chin down on a pressure-pad inside his helmet, sending a short burst of static across the squads' encrypted radio COM channel: an "in position" signal for the leader of Bravo squad, now positioned by the warehouses back entrance.

He waited for Bravo's two-burst response, then he pushed away from the buildings pitted concrete wall, raised a knee to his chest, and smashed his boot against the thin metal door, just above the lock.

The intelligence from the Department of Extranormal Operations (DEO) had suggested there would be stiff resistance. But it turned out most of the aliens inside the bomb shop were unarmed. Those that were carried human weapons. Semi-automatic pistols; inconsequential weapons whose rounds simply clattered off Naruto's armor as he and his squad sidled through the shattered door like hulking crabs, weapons up and scanning.

What the strike team knew that the DEO didn't was the real threat would come from the aliens who weren't firing—the ones with free hands who might trigger hidden explosives and blow the workshop to smithereens. The one alien who dared took a three-round burst from Naruto's heavily modified silenced submachine gun and flopped back onto a steel worktable, it's four arms outstretched and twitching. Naruto watched a small, cylindrical detonator slip slowly from the alien's lolling fist...and hit the floor with a harmless ping.

Major threat neutralized, the strike team refocused and let the pistol-wielding "Invaders" have it.

Naruto's suppressed MP5K-PDW was a light firearm. But its...off-world enhancements...allowed equally enhanced five-millimeter, full-metal-jacket rounds to rip ugly holes in his targets' powder blue clean-suits. Some of the aliens Naruto targeted dropped like stones. Others seemed to dance to the bullets' dull percussion, spinning bloody pirouettes onto the workshop's oil-stained floor.

Start to finish; the firefight lasted less than ten seconds. A dozen aliens lay dead; the strike team hadn't suffered any casualties.

"Hell." Bravo leaders big Australian accent filled the COM. "We didn't even change magazines."

To the perspiring officers in the cramped tactical operations center (TOC) miles away on the other side of the city hidden in a secure location under one of the DEO's smaller bases in the city, it did seem like a perfect takedown—a rare victory in what had so far been a frustrating cat-and-mouse conflict. But then Naruto cautioned, "ARCHER online. Haven't seen anything yet."

The Staff Sergeant pulled his chin off the COM-switch inside his helmet and continued sweeping the air around him with a palm-sized wedge of black plastic perforated by microscopic holes. This was a tactical version of an ARCHER device: a portable laser spectrometer used to sniff out traces of explosive chemical compounds. Larger, more powerful units were deployed in orbit and at checkpoints into major cities and high-level government facilities.

Despite the density of coverage, the alien bomb-makers had become quite adept at fooling the system by concealing their explosives in off-world materials.

Every time they hit a target with something an ARCHER thought was no more dangerous than, say, an alien bar of soap, the DEO would analyze the explosive residue and add the new chemical signature to the detection database. Unfortunately, this was a reactive strategy that heavily favored the Alien invaders, who were constantly changing their recipes.

Naruto frowned at his ARCHER. The thing was clicking loudly, trying to get a lock on what it believed might be a new mix. But the firefight had filled the air with an invisible soup of chemical possibilities. The three other agents in alpha-squad were conducting a visual search, checking the workshop's clusters of autosynthesizers and machine tools. But so far they hadn't found anything that looked—as best as they could tell—like a bomb.

Naruto took a deep breath then relayed the bad news to the TOC. "ARCHER is blind. Please advise, over."

The Staff Sergeant had been fighting aliens long enough to know what would happen next—the things they would have to do to get the actionable intelligence his officers required. But he also knew these were the kinds of things a smart agent didn't do without a direct order.

"DEO believes the ordinance is in play," replied Naruto's CO, and Director of the DEO, Major Lucy Lane. "Take the gloves off, agent. My authorization."

While Naruto's squad searched the workshop, Bravo's leader quickly brought the four aliens who had survived the firefight to their knees in the center of the shop floor. All had their clean-suits' hoods removed, and their wrists bound together behind their backs with black plastic ties. Naruto met Bravo's mirror-visored gaze and nodded his head. Without a moment's hesitation, Bravo raised one of his thick-soled boots and brought it down on one of the nearest aliens outstretched calves.

The Naltorian waited a full second before crying out, as if he were, like Naruto, surprised that the thud of Bravo's boot hitting the floor was louder than the near-simultaneous snap of his leg.

Then the alien screamed, loud and long. Naruto waited patiently for him to take a breath. Then, through his helmet's exterior speaker, he asked, "The bombs. Where are they?"

Naruto guessed one broken leg would be enough. But the alien was tough—uneager to rat to agents of a government he despised. He didn't beg for mercy or toss out any of the usual anti-human invectives. He just sat there, glowering into Naruto's visor, as Bravo's leader broke his other leg. Without his feet to balance him, the man toppled face-first onto the floor. Naruto heard the sound of teeth snapping—like sticks of chalk against a blackboard.

"Next, it's your arms," Naruto said matter-of-factly. He knelt beside the man, palmed his head, and wrenched it sideways. "Then, I let my friend get creative."

"Tires. In the tires." The words bubbled from the alien's mouth.

The agents in Naruto's squad immediately moved to the stacks of large tires placed around the workshop's walls, lifted them gently to the floor, and began probing their wheel wells. Naruto knew the aliens were smarter than that. Taking Bravo's victim at his word, he guessed the tires were the bombs—that the aliens had mixed the explosives into their synthetic rubber treads—a devious innovation his ARCHER soon confirmed and uploaded to the TOC.

The tires' explosive compound wasn't in the detection database. But the DEO director advising the mission couldn't have been more pleased. For once, they were a step ahead of the enemy, and it took less than a minute before they got a positive ID. One of dozens of aerial ARCHER drones patrolling the main highway into Metropolis caught a whiff of the compound in skid marks created by a sixteen-wheel hauler as it veered into the parking lot of a roadside diner. Some, if not all, of its tires, were bombs waiting to be blown.

As the drone—a tiny disk, a meter wide, kept aloft by a single, shrouded rotor—circled high above the hauler, it detected a second trace of the explosive inside the diner.

Scrutinizing a live feed of the drone's thermal camera overlaid with ARCHER data, the officers in the TOC determined the trace originated from the restaurant's crowded food counter—from a man sitting three stools from the front door.

"Agents, get back to your birds," ordered Major Lane. "You've got a new target."

"What about the prisoners?" Naruto asked. The blood from the alien's fractured legs and ruined mouth had pooled darkly around his boots.

The next person to speak was the operation's DC representative—an officer Naruto had never met in person. Like most spooks, he preferred to remain as anonymous as possible.

"Is the one who talked still alive?" the officer asked.

"Affirmative," Naruto replied.

"Pack him up, Staff Sergeant. Neutralize the rest."

There was no sympathy in the officer's voice—not for the kneeling aliens nor their executioners. Naruto clenched his jaw as he switched his weapon to semi-automatic and shot each alien twice in the chest. The three beings fell backward and did not move. But Bravo leader gave them each a dead check—another single bullet to their foreheads—to be sure.

Naruto couldn't help staring at the carnage, but he did his best not to let the torn blue fabric of the aliens' clean-suits and the white smoke curling from Bravo's weapon imprint in his mind's eye. Memories had a habit of coming back, and this was a scene he would rather not revisit.

As Bravo leader hefted their lone prisoner over his shoulder, Naruto motioned the other agents out the workshop to the waiting MH-6s. Less than fifteen minutes after they'd dropped in, the two squads were clipped back into place. The helicopter's rotors spun, and they streaked back the way they came. But this time they flew for speed, high over the cities buildings.

The officers in the TOC briefly debated whether or not the drone circling the diner should destroy the hauler if it tried to roll back on the highway before the strike team arrived. The four-lane road was snarled with commuter traffic, and just one of the drone's micro-missiles was powerful enough to gut the big truck. Even an exact hit on the hauler's cab might touch off its tires, killing dozens of people in the surrounding vehicles. Far better, the DC officer argued, to flatten the hauler in the diner's parking lot. But Major Lane was just as worried about shrapnel hitting the crowded restaurant.

Fortunately, the target individual spent the MH-6's five-minute flight eating a leisurely breakfast. According to the real-time feed from the drone's camera now mirrored in the corner of Naruto's HUD, the man was just finishing his second cup of coffee when the strike team buzzed up behind a smoked-glass, multistory office building on the opposite side of the highway.

The feed was a high-angle thermal picture of the restaurant's interior in which hot objects biased white and cold items black. The target individual was very pale, as were the food counter's other patrons. The lukewarm coffee in the man's mug appeared dark gray—which meant he was due for a refill or was about to settle his tab and stand up. But most important, Naruto noticed he was surrounded by a red glow, an indication from the drone's ARCHER that he was covered with explosive residue. Naruto guessed the man had recently been at the raided workshop; maybe he'd even helped fit the explosive tires on the hauler.

As Naruto's MH-6 rotated sideways to face the office building, he strained against the black nylon cords clipped to his shoulder plates and loosed a McMillan TAC-50 anti-material from the aircraft's skids. The weapon, a fifty-inch long tube of human/alien metal, shot .50 BMG bullets at 805 m/s. While it was technically an anti-materiel weapon designed for eliminating bombs and other ordnance at a distance, it was also extremely effective against so-called "soft" human targets as well.

Naruto lowered the TAC-50 on its shock-absorbing armature and hugged it to his shoulder.

Immediately, the rifle's targeting system established a wireless link to his helmet's HUD, and a thin blue line angled across the drone's feed. This was the TAC-50's aiming vector—the path its twelve-point-seven-millimeter rounds would travel. Naruto angled the rifle down until the vector turned green: an indication that his first shot would pass directly through the target individual's chest. Almost as if the man could feel the invisible line enter through his left armpit and exit just below his right, he swiped his credit chip against the counter and swiveled around on his stool.

Naruto thumbed the safety-switch above the rifle's trigger. He performed two calming breaths and whispered.

"Target acquired. Request permission to fire."

In the few seconds it took Major Lane to respond, the target sauntered to the diner's double-doors. Naruto watched him hold the entrance open for a family of four. He imagined the man smiled—said something kind to the two parents as they hurried after their ravenous and rowdy boys.

"Permission granted," Major Lane replied. "Fire at will."

Naruto refocused and increased the pressure of his gloved finger on the TAC-50's trigger.

He waited for the man to stroll down a short flight of steps—until a hash mark on the aiming vector indicated his first shot would angle harmlessly into the parking lot. As the man reached into his baggy coveralls, perhaps for the hauler's key, Naruto fired.

The .50 BMG slug exited the barrel with a muffled crack and punched through two of the office building's drywall-walls, with no adverse effect on its trajectory.

Traveling at over two thousand feet per second, the round whistled over the highway and hit the target at the apex of his sternum. The man flew back as the round buried itself in a rooster tail of pulverized asphalt.

Instantly, both helicopters surged up and over the office building and raced across the highway; Naruto's banked into a covering orbit while Bravo's plunged toward the restaurant.

The Bravo team leader leaped from his landing-skid while the aircraft was still a few meters above the ground and fast-walked his squad to the hauler. Bits of pink gore covered the vehicles' cab. Ragged pieces of brown coveralls clung to the side of its cargo trailer.

"We're secure," Bravo growled over the COM.

"Negative," Naruto countered. Checking the drone's leaden feed, he noticed a persistent red glow near the dead man's stool. "There's a bomb inside the restaurant."

Bravo and his squad sprinted to the diner's entrance and burst through its double doors. The diners twisted in their seats and gawked as the armored agents emerged from the vending machine-packed foyer. One of the waitresses held out a menu, an involuntary gesture that earned a rough shove from Bravo as he muscled past. The team leaders ARCHER clattered like an enraged insect as he pulled something from under the food-counter: a purse, burgundy mesh with a golden chain.

At that moment, the door to the restaurant's bathrooms at the far end of the counter swung open. A middle-aged woman in black pants and a cropped corduroy coat stepped through, casually flicking water from her freshly washed hands. When she saw the armored hulks of bravo squad, she stopped midstride. Her heavily mascaraed eyes darted toward the purse—her purse.

"On your knees!" Bravo bellowed. "Hands on your head!"

But as the Staff Sergeant lowered the purse to the counter and brought his MP5K-PDW to bear, the woman lunged toward a table where the family of four had just gotten settled. She hooked an arm around the neck of the youngest boy and wrenched him out of his chair. He couldn't have been any more than four years old. His little feet kicked as he began to choke.

Bravo cursed, loud enough for the officers in the TOC to hear. If he hadn't been burdened by armor, he would have dropped the woman before she moved. But now she had a hostage and command of the situation.

"Get back!" the woman shrieked, "Do you hear me?" With her free hand, she pulled a detonator from her coat—the same size and shape as the one Naruto had seen in the workshop.

She held the device in front of the boy's face. "Get back, or I'll kill them all!"

For a moment, no one moved. Then, as if the woman's threat had pulled some invisible linchpin keeping all the diners locked to their seats, they sprung up and scrambled for the diner's exits.

Naruto watched the chaos unfold in his HUD. He saw the bright white shapes of more than thirty terrified civilians surge around the bravo squad, driving them back and confusing their aim.

"Alpha-leader. Take the shot!" Bravo ordered over the COM.

As Naruto's MH-6 orbited the restaurant, the TAC-50's aiming-vector rotated around the woman, piercing the axis of her chest. But her heat signature was almost indistinguishable from the boy's.

Suddenly, Naruto saw the ghostly image of the captured boy's father rise from his chair, hands raised to show the Innie woman he was unarmed. Naruto couldn't hear the father's pleas (they were too soft for the bravo squad's helmet microphones), but his calmness only increased the woman's panic. She began backing toward the restroom, waving the detonator, her threats now so furious they were incomprehensible. Her face shifted, becoming more reptilian as blonde hair melted into grayish skin.

"Nail the bitch," Bravo shouted. "Or I will!"

"Firing," Naruto said. But instead, he watched the aiming-vector pivot, waiting for an angle that might spare the boy. "Firing," he repeated, hoping his words would stay Byrne's trigger- finger. But Naruto didn't fire. Not immediately. And in his moment's pause, the father jumped forward, grasping for the detonator.

Naruto could only stare as the woman tumbled backward, father on top, and the boy pressed between. He heard the rattle of Bravo's MP5, then the muffled thump of the bomb in the purse followed by the earthshaking boom of the hauler's tires. The drone's feed bleached painfully bright, slamming Naruto's eyes shut. Then a wall of shock and heat tossed him back hard against the MH-6's airframe.

The last thing Naruto remembered before he slacked inside his armor was the sound of thrusters fighting for altitude—a noise more like a scream than a moan.

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**Prologue to the Naruto & Supergirl crossover story I'll be posting!**

**This story will be connected to "The Odessey" & "Central City's Finest" Won't say how right now, but I will give everyone two hints...**

**...Orphan Black and Naruto's signature Jutsu**

_**Quick disclaimer: Arrowverse Naruto has a story posted on this site called Agent Uzumaki. I've asked him if I could use the premise of his story for this one, and he graciously agreed because, sadly, he will not be updating his story anymore.**_

**Thanks for reading!**

**P.S. Leave review for Pairing you want to see!**


	2. Fallout

Disclaimer: I Do Not Own Naruto Or Supergirl

* * *

Naruto found himself alone, running through the halls of one of Metropolis' cloud reaching apartment buildings. People brushed past him on either side, too concerned with their own well being to see him or anyone that wasn't immediately related to them. Young, old, male, female, human, alien— and many more, all running for their lives. All filled with the same soul freezing terror. Naruto pushed himself in the opposite direction of the exits. The building beneath his feet shook.

_Keep moving,_ he thought. _Keep moving...I have to get there._

He shoved another alien aside with ease and pushed further down the hallway. Closer to the apartment he lived in, the air was hotter. Naruto felt the heat building and covered his face with his arms. He kept his eyes shielded and pushed further. But his feet barely took two steps before he was sent back. The back half of the hallway had crumbled away. Naruto was being dragged by the collar of his shirt.

Suddenly, the hand on his collar loosened. Looking up, Naruto just caught sight of a stray brick smacking into his would-be saviors head. Blood splashed across the walls, and the elderly man fell.

Naruto left him on the floor and ran.

But now the further he pushed down the hall, the closer the edge came. Metal and brick fell like a waterfall down the side of the building. Naruto felt a huge gust of air that knocked him on his ass. He closed his eyes, lids burning, and felt glass cut into his face.

Ignoring the pain, Naruto opened his eyes and saw it. A solid red door leading into a warm home.

Pushing through, Naruto saw the door was one of the few things left standing. Most of the apartment was blown clean off. Its walls were splintered, and its windows shattered. All the tables and chairs were burned and smelled of smoke. Toward the back sat a woman, her simple clothes the only thing not covered in a layer of ash.

"A boy's isn't a boy that doesn't ruin his clothes..." Naruto heard his mother say.

"I know," He replied, reaching to straighten his tie. But he no longer wore his school uniform. Instead, he found himself burdened by matte-black impact plating.

"You always hated uniforms." She looked up at him—with the same eyes Naruto had— and she smiled.

As Naruto smiled back, the woman waved and pointed to the hallway outside the apartment. Naruto turned and saw a man, seemingly larger than life, wearing a colorful costume, cape swaying behind his knees.

"You're in the way," Superman said, eyes glowing red.

"Wait," Naruto begged, reaching to grab the alien.

He groaned and dropped to a knee. His armor had become unbearably heavy. He planted his gloved hands on the ash-covered floor to keep himself from collapsing. Through narrowed eyes, he saw boot prints: the frantic footwork of agents working to surround a target.

Superman frowned. "I can't be distracted." He lifted into the air, flying out of the crumbling building. He casually slammed into another across the street, as if not noticing something was obstructing his flight path.

The shockwave of his departure sent the woman stumbling to the edge of the apartment.

"Careful, mom!" Naruto shouted. "It's not safe!" He tried to leap forward and grab her hand.

But his legs were leaden—rooted to the floor. Naruto heard the sounds of Superman's heat vision, saw its shadow ripple across the apartment.

"Relax," Naruto's mother said to him. "You'll be safe.

Naruto groaned and tried to crawl. His armor had become unbearably heavy. He planted his gloved hands on the ash-covered floor to keep himself from collapsing.

His mother repeated herself. But this time, her voice seemed to come from somewhere else—an echo from beyond the restaurant, but somehow very close to Naruto's ear.

"Relax. You'll be alright..."

Naruto did, and he was. The potent pharmaceuticals that had kept him unconscious since his fight aboard the freighter drained from his veins like water from a bath. He felt the tug of an imagined drain and let himself settle to the bottom. When his eyes finally opened, they seemed to do so at quarter-speed.

"There you are," Lucy Lane said, standing close beside his bed. "Welcome back."

Naruto knew he had been dreaming, but he was still surprised to see her.

"How long have I been out?" He croaked, taking in his surroundings: a small room with cream-colored walls, monitoring equipment, and an IV stand—its tubing running to a needle in the top of his right hand. Naruto smelled antiseptic and aggressively bleached linens.

_A hospital,_ he thought, a suspicion quickly confirmed as Lucy lifted a pitcher of ice water from a wheeled cart and filled a glass etched with the words Metropolis General.

"Almost two days," she said, handing Naruto the glass. "You had a fractured skull."

Naruto rose onto an elbow, took the glass, and drained it with a long, slow sip. Sunday...That was when the DEO had gotten actionable intel on the bomb shops. Alpha and Bravo team had been briefed, armed, and on their way to Metropolis.

"What about the civilians?"

"Most lived. Had enough sense to keep running after they got out of the diner." Lucy put the pitcher back on the tray. "We lost the boy's father. You saved the boy. Switched him with one of the other agents. The others shielded him from the blast. He's got a few burns, but he'll live."

Naruto frowned. "I don't remember that."

"What do you remember?" the Major asked. Lucy seemed penned in by the room's narrow walls. "Take me through it. Step by step."

Naruto furrowed his brow.

"The room's secure. And you're the only patient in this wing," Lucy explained.

Naruto reached for a row of buttons embedded in his bed's side-rail. Motors whirred, and the bed lifted him to a sitting position. Placing his glass in a nest of sheets that filled his lap, Naruto settled into a familiar mode: cut-and-dried delivery of an after-action report to a superior.

But he only got a minute or so in—was just starting to describe the combat with the aliens—when Lucy shook her head.

"I saw that through your helmet cam. How did you move the boy?" She asked, wrapping her arms across her chest.

"Ma'am?"

Lucy had begun to sag. Her shoulders sinking as she stood at his bedside. "The President is here, Naruto. She wants to talk to you about your powers. The ones you kept secret. Why did you lie?"

"I didn't. I've never—"

"Naruto, now is the time to come clean," Lucy said. "I can help you, but this...this doesn't look good. For either of us."

Naruto was about to give a passionate argument about how he had no idea he could teleport things and how his powers must still be growing when the door to his room slid open. President Olivia Marsdin stood in the doorway.

"Major," She said. "If we might have a word."

"I'll handle this, Naruto." Lucy patted Naruto's leg through his sheets then headed for the door. "Focus on your recovery."

Naruto sat up as straight as he could, straining his IV. "Thank you, ma'am."

Lucy followed the President outside. Naruto raised his glass, tossed a few cubes of melting ice past his lips, and began to crunch. The movement of his jaw worsened an ache in the back of his skull. He reached around and felt a bumpy line—a cauterized incision through which the doctors must have made before they were stopped.

Naruto could hear Lucy's voice outside the door, but he couldn't make out what she was saying. At first, President Marsdin's responses were similarly muffled, but the exchange quickly increased in volume—crescendoed with a sharp order from the President and accepting mutterings from Lucy. Naruto heard departing footfalls, and a few moments later, Lucy slid back into the room alone.

He reached out and placed his empty glass on the cart. "How much of a problem did my failure cause her?"

Lucy crossed her arms behind her back and leaned against the wall beside the door. "None. This isn't about your mission."

The President had already been on her way to Metropolis when the DEO had obtained the intel needed to move on the bomb shops. But if Lucy was upset that she'd been left out of the loop, she didn't show it. Her expression was perfectly calm.

"Then why was she here?"

Lucy pushed away from the wall. "Myriad. A city full of citizens of the United States was under alien control. Supergirl might have stopped it, but the entire world saw what was happening. Maxwell Lord made sure of that." Lucy stepped to the foot of Naruto's bed. "President Marsdin is being pressured to act. Between Hank Henshaw's exposure as a Green Martian, Supergirl, and their failure to stop Myriad before it became active, the National City branch of the DEO needs reform."

Naruto remembered the videos he saw online and on the news. Thousands of people, humans, walking down the empty streets of National City, like lambs to a slaughter.

"She wants me, doesn't she? I'm just one guy."

"We both know that isn't true," Lucy said.

"So...what? Am I just supposed to pack up my life and go back? Because, why? The Henshaw and his second in command have got a thing for superheroes in skirts?"

Lucy wrapped her hands around the stainless steel bar that bracketed the bottom of Naruto's mattress. She squeezed, as if doubtful of the metal's strength. "I've spent time there. It's not as professional as it should be, but our National City branch gets the job done. But that just isn't enough. Not anymore."

Naruto heard the frustration in her voice: a flaw in her emotionless facade. He had an opportunity to say the right thing—to explain that he shared her frustration, and to ask her what they could do, together, to stave off his transfer. Instead, he let his anger get the better of him.

"Washington's playing politics," he snarled. "And you're not gonna do a damn thing about it?"

Naruto had been testing the boundaries of insubordination since Lucy reentered the room, but this was a clear step over the line. Lucy pulled her hands from the bar.

"I've been given a direct order from the Commander-in-Chief. An order in which I in—in no uncertain terms—am supposed to sign the transfer papers assigning you to the DEO's National City branch." Any weakness in her voice was gone. She locked Naruto's brazen stare. "What, Staff Seargeant, do you suggest I do?"

Major Lucy Lane's name had clout. But Naruto knew it would still take more than her word for him not to be transferred. If the President herself had made the order, he was going to National City. And Naruto knew, deep in his gut, there was nothing Lucy could do to stop it.

With a silent curse, he yanked out his IV, threw back his bed-sheets, and swung a foot onto the floor. His hospital gown was surprisingly short, and Lucy was at a particularly awkward angel. But her eyes remained fixed on his as he removed his freshly washed uniform from the middle shelf of the hospital cart, stepped into his black fatigue pants, and fastened them beneath his gown.

"What are you doing?"

"Returning to duty."

Naruto tore off his gown and tossed it on the bed. Now Lucy's eyes did flick up and down, registering the ugly contusions the recent fight had left on Naruto's broad chest and shoulders.

"I don't remember giving you permission to do that."

Naruto muscled into his black collared long sleeve shirt, dropped to a knee, and did up his boots. "I have my orders. Transfer to National F'ing City. And I intend to do just that."

Avery stood up and marched toward the door. Lucy sidestepped and barred his path. He was a head taller, much heavier, and much, much stronger. But looking down at her stoic face, Naruto honestly wondered who'd come out on top if he tried to push past, and she tried to stop him. In the end, all she needed was her voice.

"I didn't want this, Naruto." She paused. "I know what that city took from you."

"Ma'am."

Lucy stepped aside, and Naruto slid open the door. Stepping into the hall, he was surprised to see President Marsdin, sitting on a cushioned bench a few doors down, fingers busy on her cellphone's screen. She looked up as Avery approached.

"I was expecting worse." She smiled. "You look pretty good. All things considered."

"Madam President," Lucy said as she strode quickly past.

Naruto and the President watched Lucy head toward an elevator at the end of the hall. Her black boot's low heels clacked loudly on the polished white tile floor. Naruto waited until she was inside the elevator, and the door was closed before he asked.

"What the hell, Oliva? National City?"

"I didn't mean for this to happen." the President dropped her phone into the pocket of her suit. "But Lucy isn't at fault. You owe her an apology."

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "I don't need you to tell me that."

"She's following her orders." President Marsdin put her hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Just like I know, you will. Despite your feelings on the matter. That's why I need you in National City."

Naruto knew what the President was alluding to. He had mentioned it to Lucy in his room. Supergirl had too much pull at the DEO.

"I am sorry." the President said, leading Naruto toward the elevator. "I believe Supergirl has Earth's best interest in her heart, and I know she just wants to help, but the Supers...they don't see things the way humans do. They don't have to. I can't have her way of thinking infringe on the DEO. We can't afford that."

"You already gave the order, Olivia," Naruto said. "No need to explain."

"It was the only option I had without giving more power to the anti-alien politicians. My pardon for J'onn J'onzz has already put me under a microscope. And the Alien Amnesty Act isn't helping matters."

"I understand," Naruto said calmly. "I'll be on the first train to National City."

"Thank you." President Marsdin pressed the down arrow next to the elevator doors. "I've taken the liberty of finding you an apartment. It has everything you need. Close to the DEO, good school district and Maxwell Lord lived there before, so it's impervious to most known alien powers. It even has a nice view of the city."

"Free of charge?" the elevator dinged, and the doors slid open. Naruto stepped inside.

"Of course." President Marsdin reached out and stopped the doors from closing. "You could have fought this, Naruto. We both know how...thank you for not doing that."

"I'll see you in a few weeks Madam President," Naruto said as she moved her hand, and the doors slid shut.

* * *

**Had this and chapter 2 already written and decided not to wait!**

**Huge thanks to the people already reviewing, following and favoriting the story!**

**And to_ adam199118_: My take on the pairing is...open-minded...nothing is set in stone and most likely won't show up this season. **

**Thanks for reading!**


	3. Homecoming

Disclaimer: I Do Not Own Naruto Or Supergirl

* * *

"Things in National City have gotten out of hand, Hank...J'onn," The President corrected herself and apologized for the slip. "I'm sorry. A new name will take some getting used to."

"Hank is fine, Madam President," J'onn said. He stood rigidly at attention.

The President's call was a surprise, but not shocking. After the Myriad fiasco, it was not unreasonable for her to want information on the man they found last night as quickly as possible. "I regret to inform you that we have no new confirmed information on the alien Supergirl found last night. At the moment, all we have are guesses and assumptions."

_He had only been found last night,_ Went unsaid. J'onn may have revealed himself to the world as the Martian Manhunter, but he was still an American citizen, and luckily, he was still the Director of the National City branch of the DEO. However, that meant he answered to the President and faced the repercussions when he did not have the answers she needed.

That did not mean he was not curious as to why the President would contact him over one alien. She had never contacted him first about the update on an alien that wasn't hostile. Had Myriad set them back that far?

President Marston raised her hand, halting any further explanation. "I did not call about the alien, Director. You have a new agent arriving today in National City. He's one of the best and a close friend, treat him well."

"I didn't request any new personnel?" J'onn said, confused. Why was someone being transferred to his facility without his approval? That was not how the DEO operated. Every one of their agents had to go through a rigorous background check before being hired.

"I'm aware of that, Director." President Marsdin said. "However, after the Myriad incident, things have changed. An entire city under the control of aliens...J'onn that can't be swept under the rug or hidden. People needed assurances. Proof that the DEO is working harder than ever to make sure that nothing like that ever happens again."

J'onn's lips creased down in a deep frown. President Marston looked away from the camera. The call went mute on her end, and she covered the camera with her hand.

A moment later, sound returned, and she was speaking again. "Something has come up, Director. So, apologies for being blunt, but I need to keep this quick. The DEO is facing major budget cuts if things do not change. Cuts I can't allow, but won't be able to stop. The organization is too important for that. I'll have my assistant send the paperwork. I need you to understand the magnitude of what a Post-Myriad world looks like for the DEO."

"I understand, Madam President." J'onn gave a solemn nod. He knew the DEO had failed where Myriad was concerned. "Concerning this new agent, Madam President. I don't-"

"It will all be explained in the package my assistant will send." President Marsdin said. "I bagged you and Ace, Director. I expect your full cooperation where he is concerned. Understood?"

"Yes, Madam President." J'onn saluted as the line to the White House went dead, and the monitor faded to black.

_A new agent. Sent without my consent._ J'onn pondered the new information. He had not expected to recover from the fallout of his being exposed as a Martian. The President's pardon, while welcoming, had been unexpected. He had not even considered that she or her advisors would see past the surface level of his deception.

An alien masquerading as a dead government agent and running a Top-secret organization? He could have been tried for treason. Sentenced to death. And yet here he was, Director of the DEO in National City. A demotion to be sure, as he was no longer the Director of the entire DEO, but he was still protecting the Earth. Still battling alien threats. Still doing his job. A job that was now being called into question, not because of his status as an alien, but because of his ability to accomplish the DEO's mission to protect Earth.

* * *

_**00**_

When Naruto woke again, he was already home. National City, the onetime example of what Metropolis should have been, was now just like Superman's city. Under attack once a week and throwing its citizen's tax dollars at cleaning up Supergirl's messes.

Checking his phone, on the train from Metropolis to National City, Naruto confirmed he was to report to the DEO HQ immediately upon arrival in the city. There was a note on the pass from Lucy detailing the outcome of his last mission. All of Naruto's Alpha squad had been killed. They had taken the brunt of the explosion to save the boy. Bravo squad hadn't been any luckier. All were confirmed killed-in-action(KIA) by TOC.

The note said nothing about civilian injuries or casualties other than the father and son inside the diner. But Naruto remembered the force of the hauler's blast, from more than half a dozen perspectives, and he doubted that Lucy was telling the whole truth in the hospital.

He tried not to think about it—let his mind go blank—as he sat alone in his private cabin at the back of the train. He had tried both Director Lane and the President, hoping one of them could get his seat changed. A private cabin would draw attention that he didn't want. Of course, no matter what the experienced field agents said, orders from the fat-cat bosses and politicians trumped their expertise.

It was one of the reasons why he left the DEO in the first place. It was too new. Had too many people trying to accomplish their own goals all at the same time. Nothing could get done with a system like that.

Yet he had been pulled back in. Under the new leadership of Major Lucy Lane, and far away from National City.

_And yet here I am,_ Naruto thought as the sprawling city he swore he'd never return to came into view.

"We are now entering National City. All passengers, please prepare for departure, and thank you for riding United Railways."

"I'm too soft," Naruto muttered to himself.

He grabbed the black duffel bags between his legs and stood up as the train began to slow. Leaving his cabin, he ignored the looks he got from the passengers as he walked the aisle. Their staring didn't come as a shock. Compared to the colorful and varied clothing around him, he stood out in his all-black DEO uniform.

When Naruto stepped out onto the elevated platform of the train station, the hot and humid air of the West coast was a blast from the past. As the sun dove to a fiery finish, he tried to enjoy the little breeze that was coming off the San Diego Bay.

Only a second later, when a sonic boom shattered the glass on the windows and doors of the train, did Naruto's senses snap back into focus.

The crowd around him burst into cheers, celebrating the sighting of their hometown hero.

Naruto looked around at the station. National City residents might be cheering, but the visitors weren't. He saw businessman running after papers, a mother and father coddling their child as her arm bled.

Looking back up into the sky, he started walking with a sigh. "There's no place like home."

Arms laded with duffel bags and wearing his black fatigue pants, collared shirt, and cap, Naruto was drenched with sweat by the time he reached the DEO, two large glass buildings at the heart of the city. The organization had gotten an upgrade from the desert bunker Naruto had served in years ago. A little too shiny for him, but the new base had a few perks. It was closer to the city, meaning a faster response time for the agents. That was what was selling him on it.

As Naruto waited for an elevator that would take him to the Director's office, he stared at the agents who would be becoming his brother and sisters in arms. He doubted that they had been told. Knowing the President of the United States had been forced to act because they couldn't do their jobs would be demoralizing. Not that he blamed the run of the mill agents for Myriad.

_An organization is only as strong as it's a leader,_ he thought as he was lifted away from the ground floor.

Hank Henshaw, or J'onn J'onzz, as he was called now, had become soft. The original Hank Henshaw...the _Human_ Hank Henshaw, was too hard on aliens. He hated them; anyone could see that. Naruto didn't agree with or like the old policies of the DEO. Before J'onn, the organization was a walking-talking cliche of a shadowy government agency. Abducting people of the streets. Snatching suspected aliens out of their homes. Scratching off known alien-sympathizers.

It was deplorable. And yet...  
...Naruto had to question which version of the DEO was more effective.

Disregarding their morals, having a DEO with a Green Martain at the helm should have been the clear favorite.

Super strength. Super speed. Super stamina. Flight. Invulnerability. Malleability. Accelerated healing factor. Bio-clothing. Camouflage. Density-shifting. Shapeshifting. Telekinesis. Telepathy.

J'onn J'onzz, like Naruto, was a living, breathing weapon. A powerful one at that. Which was why Naruto didn't understand how the Kryptonians had launched Myriad. With his abilities as a Green Martian, Supergirl as an ally, and a stash of Kryptonite, J'onn should have been able to stop it. The DEO had even managed to capture the leader of the invading force!

Naruto stepped forward as the elevator doors opened into the command center of the DEO. As he looked around at the monitors and agents, he heard the powerful footsteps that could only belong to an alien. No human had enough strength to take a _step_ that hard. A moment later, a smiling, blonde superhero appeared in his field of view.

"Excuse me," Naruto said.

"I haven't seen you around before." Supergirl's voice was light, peppy even. "Are you a new recruit?"

Naruto looked her up and down. Unlike him, she wasn't in a uniform. An announcement that she didn't work for the DEO. Her colorful costume and crest declared her allegiance to no one but herself and her family.

"Naruto Prince. Staff Sergeant." Naruto introduced himself using his WITSEC name.

Supergirl's grin widened. "Like Professor Snape. You know, from Harry Potter?"

She extended one hand and used the other to motion at the DEO base. Naruto looked down at the offered hand, then back up at Supergirl's earnest face. It was like she didn't even care about what happened earlier. Or more likely didn't even know, which may be worse.

He reached out and took her hand. President Marsdin hadn't been exaggerating. If an alien consultant for the DEO like Supergirl could get away with such actions, why would any other alien try and conform to Human laws?

Supergirl took his silence for something it wasn't, and she spoke. "Don't worry, it can be a little overwhelming at first. I remember the first time I was brought to a DEO base. Boy, was it not pleasant. They shot me out of the sky!"

Naruto ignored the small anecdote. "You flew past a train station on the way here."

"Oh...um, yeah," Supergirl said, pulling her hand back. "How'd you know."

"I was on it," Naruto narrowed his eyes. Supergirl's confusion was confirming his suspicions about the incident. "You were flying too fast. You need to slow down in populated areas.

_What?_ Kara chuckled nervously, looking around for Alex or J'onn. _What is with this guy?_ He was talking weird. Like she had done something to offend him, which wasn't cool, at all. Beacuse she was positive, they had never even met before. She was good at remembering faces.

So, why did it seem as if he had a problem with her? Was it because she was an alien? No, J'onn would hire someone who hated aliens.

"I'll be sure to remember that." She said, for lack of a better answer and sighed in relief as she saw her sister and J'onn coming towards them. Alex might be teasing her date with James later, but that was better than awkward talk with the new guy.

"Remeber what?" J'onn asked. He was looking at her, and she could practically see the shift in him when he looked at the new guy. He straightened, standing taller, and his fist clenched at his side.

"Our newest recruit was just telling me about how I needed to slow down in populated areas." Kara smiled and leaned forward, nudging Naruto's shoulder. "Did I knock you off your feet?"

Naruto ignored the joke. There wasn't anything funny about what happened. "No, you shattered some of the windows. Three people got hit by flying glass. One was a child."

"People got...I didn't..." Supergirl flustered, searching for words.

"Know." Naruto finished for her. "I didn't think you would."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kara demanded indignantly. If she had known people had gotten hurt, she would've gone back to help them. She would have flown them to the hospital herself.

"It means you're careless with your powers. Like your cousin." Naruto switched his eyes to J'onn leaving Kara to splutter at the slight against her family "Director, Agent-"

"Naruto U-"

"Prince." Naruto cut J'onn off. High ranking government officials and a handful of trustworthy individuals were the only people who knew his real name. Supergirl and the red-haired agent were neither of those.

J'onn nodded and continued smoothly. "It's been years since you left the DEO. It'll be a pleasure to work with you again."

Kara glowered at Naruto as he shook hands with J'onn before the Director led him away.

"He doesn't like me." She said, looking at her sister. "And that crack about my powers? What was that?"

"He doesn't know you yet. Give it time. I'm sure he'll come around to your Danvers charm." Alex promised her sister. "And as for your powers, well..."

"You agree with him!" Kara accused.

"No, No!" Alex denied it immediately. She paused. "I'm just saying, sometimes you can get a little excited. That's all."

"Alex!" Kara shout-whispered. "How could you agree with him?"

She didn't mean to hurt anyone with her powers. Supergirl was a hero! Her powers were used for good, and she tried to save as many people as possible. How could her own sister, someone she had known for years, someone she grew up with think she would ever hurt someone?

"I do not agree with him. We don't even know if you actually hurt anyone. Did you?" Alex said, trying to calm Kara down as other agents began to glance their way. She didn't want to hurt her sister, and learning she was injuring people with her powers by accident would crush Kara.

Kara's shoulder practically collapsed as she sunk into herself. "I don't know." She admitted.

* * *

**1...2...3 Chapters all in two days?! **

**Not trying to set a pattern or anything, I just don't see the point on sitting on chapters I have written. **

**Thanks for reading. I hope you guys like it! Let me know with a review or a PM. Not a professional writer or anything so criticism is welcome!**

**P.S. Between us...this is my favorite story to write...**


	4. All Evidence to the Contrary

Disclaimer: I Do Not Naruto Or Supergirl

* * *

As they left the stuttering hero and her sister behind, Naruto glanced at the man he had known for years as Hank Henshaw as they entered the armory.

"Let me start by saying, _Agent Prince_, how grateful I am that you chose to return to National City to help the DEO," J'onn said. "I trust you had a pleasant journey?"

He wore the same black uniform Naruto was, sans cap, and if he hadn't seen the video, Naruto would have never known the Director wasn't an alien. Hank looked human. It was when he shifted into his true form that the alien hiding underneath showed.

"It was something," Naruto replied. "They put me in a private cabin." The new agent sat on a low bench before the gun racks, flipping the cap off his head. He ran a hand through the longer than regulation blonde hair on his head

Naruto's accent wasn't subtle, J'onn had traveled Earth enough to know it was from Australia. He watched as the agent unzipped his bag, pulling guns and knives out, going about attaching them to his waist and legs.

"I imagine your return home was not a suggestion," J'onn said, making sure to widen his eyes sympathetically.

"Order came straight from the Commander-in-Chief." Naruto sighed. "And frankly, I was still tempted to ignore it."

J'onn put a hand on his shoulder. "Well, I'm sorry for being part of what forced you back. I'll try and keep this as brief as possible—I didn't ask for any new recruits. The President—"

"I know," Naruto interrupted. "I talked to her in Metropolis."

J'onn raised an eyebrow. "Oh? She didn't mention that."

There was a question there. Unasked, and Naruto didn't answer. He moved to the nameless lockers against the wall and placed his neat pile of shirts and pants inside. Behind him, he heard the sounds of something shifting.

"I understand if you are upset," J'onn said. "I betrayed your trust. Betrayed everyone's trust."

Naruto coiled his fist tight enough for his nails to make indentions in his palms, he shut the locker and turned to face his new boss. J'onn had shed the skin of Hank Henshaw. He was the Martian Manhunter now.

Tall, green, and alien.

"I've been through this before," J'onn continued. "I know how angry you must be. Jim was the same. He was furious."

"I knew you weren't human," Naruto admitted. "I've known for years."

"You did?" J'onn's body began to shift. Shrinking and compacting until he was once again Hank Henshaw. "Is that why you left the DEO?"

"I left the DEO because I couldn't trust you," Naruto said.

"Because I was an alien—"

"—because you were a liar. You were doing good work as Director, but I couldn't trust you anymore. I had to move on."

"Have you?" J'onn asked. "Moved past my deceit? Can I trust you to conduct yourself professionally?"

Naruto bristled. He didn't want to be here. Keeping J'onn's secret was easy so long as the man kept dedicating his life to protecting Earth. Naruto was fine with leaving the DEO in his hands, but now, against his will, he was back. And that filled him with more anger than any lie.

Without a moment's pause, he smashed a fist into the side of J'onn's face. J'onn dropped to a knee.

"Now I can," Naruto grunted.

J'onn rose, and slugged Naruto hard enough to snap his head past his shoulders.

One of Naruto's teeth skipped along the floor and came to rest near the doorway.

"We're finished." J'onn stood straighter. "That's an order."

"Yes, sir," Naruto said.

The director gave him a final, emphatic glance, then marched across the armory to the weapons racks.

"Your arrival was short notice. We have standard-issue gear ready for any new arrivals. We'll get you measured and outfitted for field operations as soon as possible."

Naruto looked over the weapons racks and tables at the variety of knives, guns, and armor. All of it was the best the United States had available. The DEO was fighting a war against aliens, run-of-the-mill body armor and bullets wouldn't do more than weigh and agent down in the field.

It was nice of J'onn to offer, but he had his own gear.

"Kryptonite bullets." Naruto pulled a magazine filled with glowing green bullets from his bag. "Brass didn't usually let me carry them around, but after the whole Myriad deal I think they're finally getting it in their heads that Kryptonians can't be judged solely on the actions of two of their kind."

"That's not going to go over well here," J'onn eyed the bullets with wary eyes. he knew the importance of Kryptonite. "Not with Supergirl, or the agents she works with."

"The President asked me to come here, J'onn. Gave me some half-assed explanation about misconduct and Myriad." Naruto slid the magazine into his gun and attached the pistol to his belt harness. "I'm not sure what she expects me to do, but I do know that it involves changes to the DEO. And considering you spent the last couple of months fighting Kryptonians and didn't have every agent equipped with anti-Kryptonian weaponry I can see why she is worried."

"Careful, agent," J'onn warned. "You're speaking about matters you don't understand."

"I understand enough,_ Director_," Naruto stressed the title. J'onn, Hank, whatever he wanted to be called needed to get his head out of his ass. The President herself had been forced to intervene because he was not doing his job correctly. If things didn't change, Olivia was going to be under a lot of fire for pardoning J'onn J'onzz. And while Naruto was pissed that his "friend" had lied to him for so long, he didn't want to see J'onn in a prison cell. Or worse, a Cadmus Lab.

"Director," Agent Vasquez rapped her knuckles on the armory door. Her eyes went from J'onn to Naruto. "Deputy Director, a level 5 package from the White House is waiting in your office, sir."

"Thank you, Vasquez." J'onn nodded dismissing the agent. When she was gone, he turned to Naruto. "Deputy Director? That's quite the promotion for a field agent."

Naruto held up his hands. "I'm just as surprised as you."

Although it did make sense. Before he left Metropolis, President Marsdin had made it clear that he was being sent to National City to make sure the DEO started doing their job right again. He really should have seen a promotion coming. Without a position of authority, he wouldn't have been able to change a thing.

"I'll head to Lane's old office and start working," Naruto said. "Change is coming, J'onn. I'd like for us to work together so we have something to show when President Marsdin's Alien Amnesty tour reaches National City."

"Of course." J'onn agreed. As if he had a choice to do anything but.

Naruto smiled and left the armory for his new office. The Deputy Director's office. He couldn't believe it. It almost made him forgive Olivia for sending him back to National City.

Almost.

It was hours later that Naruto got his first glimpse at what was wrong with J'onn's branch of the DEO. In the form of a self-righteous hero.

"You're exposing him to Kryptonite?"

The agents inside the medical-bay stepped back nervously, letting Superman closer to the unknown alien.

"I didn't authorize this, Superman," J'onn said, standing at the foot of the aliens' bed. He wore a deep frown that did nothing to hide his confusion.

"Get these off," Superman ordered the doctors. "This man is a survivor, not a prisoner."

Naruto glared at the superhero as the doctors,_ DEO_ doctors, moved to follow the command.

"Stand down," He said, shooting Superman and the nodding Supergirl an irritated glance. "Superman does not work for the DEO. He has no say in how we conduct our operations. And neither does Supergirl."

Naruto shouldn't have had to make that order. He watched the two doctors, making note of their nametags. No one working for the DEO should be answering to non-DEO personnel unless authorized to do so. And he had given no such authorization.

"Superman," He said, calmly. "If you cannot keep your opinions to yourself, I'm going to need you to vacate the premise. Actually, who let you in here anyway?"

"Oh, I did!" Supergirl raised her hand. "He helped me with the Venture and I—"

"Did he sign the required paperwork?" Naruto interrupted. "Civilians are not allowed inside the building without first going through the proper channels. There are rules, Supergirl. I expect you to follow them."

"And you are?" Superman asked. He seemed amused. As if it was funny to think he would be held to the same standards as everyone else.

Naruto felt the blood in his veins heating up. J'onn noticed the signs and he placed himself between Naruto and Superman.

"This is Deputy Director Prince."

"Deputy Director?" Alex asked. "Didn't Lucy take that position after you were pardoned?"

J'onn shook his head. "We'll talk about this later. Right now we have something more important to discuss."

"What?" Supergirl asked.

"The Venture." Naruto glanced at J'onn and jerked his head at the hall. "Until Superman signs the required paperwork, he isn't authorized to know more."

"He helped save the Venture!" Supergirl said as she, Agent Danvers, and Superman all followed Naruto and J'onn out of the lab. "Superman's here, we should include him."

"And we will. If and only if he signs the required paperwork first." Naruto repeated what was slowly becoming a mantra. "There are rules, Supergirl."

Superman smiled. "It's alright, Supergirl. The government and I haven't seen eye to eye in years. I'll talk to you later."

Naruto watched the man of steel rise into the air and drift out of the building before vanishing in a burst of speed. Supergirl turned on him and stared like he had done something atrocious.

"You just kicked Superman out. Superman!" She said, waving her arms. "And don't think I forgot about the Kryptonite handcuffs on our guest. My cousin is right, they need to go. Now."

"That's not happening."

"He could be Kryptonian. Those cuffs could be hurting him."

"The possibility of that alien being Kryptonian is exactly why I ordered the cuffs be put on." Naruto retorted. "Kryptonians have shown us, time and time again, that they cannot be trusted."

"What?" Supergirl exploded.

"Deputy Director," Agent Danvers cut in, a soothing hand holding Supergirl's arm. "Superman and Supergirl have done nothing but help."

"Yeah?" Naruto narrowed his eyes. He'd have to take a closer look at Agent Danver's history in the DEO. She was closer to Supergirl than her file had led him to believe. For now, he'd focus on getting through to Supergirl so she didn't end up like her cousin. "Tell that to Cat Grant."

He snapped his eyes from Agent Danvers to Supergirl who wilted. "You threw her off a building, didn't you?"

"That's not...I wasn't..."

"Supergirl wasn't in control of herself." Agent Danvers interjected. She moved, stepping slightly in front of the hero. "She had been exposed to an unknown substance and—"

"I know all about Red Kryptonite, Agent," Naruto said. "That was just one example. Zod. Non. Astra. Their cohorts. Myriad. Kryptonians as a whole have proven to be not only dangerous but extremely hostile towards humanity."

"You cannot judge all Kryptonians on the actions of a few." Supergirl bristled. Like a cat. "Our people were peaceful."

"All evidence to the contrary."

The small group fell silent. There was no snappy comeback for Supergirl to use. Naruto knew it, and so did J'onn. They might have their differences, but their stance on Kryptonians wasn't one of them. Or so Naruto thought.

"Let's focus on the Venture," J'onn changed the subject.

Naruto nodded. "I'll let you fill in Supergirl, Director. My team and I will get in contact with the company that built the Venture."

As he was leaving, Supergirl spoke up, no doubt trying to get the last word in the small spat.

"I'm going to prove you have nothing to worry about from Kryptonians."

"You can try. However, your efforts won't make a difference. Not to me."

"Why is that?" Supergirl folded her arms over her chest.

"Because you and your cousin are the outliers of your species. There is only one difference between you two and the other Kryptonians. Do you know what that is?" Naruto asked, and then he answered. "The two of you were raised by humans."


End file.
